Fri. 3 June

“00 JAPAN”, which is currently in their trip to India and Vietnam, had morning training sessions in India and they then set off to Hoh Chi Minh, Vietnam. Since their match held on 2 June was called off after the 1st half due to thunderstorm, all players had the same training sessions together.

The training started from moving preparation, they then had pace running measuring their heart rate, and agility running. The players had their 6th pace running and the team was able to understand their approach to getting used to the hot weather. The players continued on to other programmes such as pass & control in a group of 4 players, 3-on-3 + goalkeeper, and 6-on-6 + goalkeeper. The weather was severely hot, but the players kept a decent level of concentration in each session.

After the training, the team moved to a swimming pool for walking in the pool for the first time of this camp. Their 6-day training in India ended. Even though their stay was short, it was good for “00 JAPAN” to experience their venues including the stadium, the training places, and the accommodation, and the food which will be provided in the AFC U-16 Championship India 2016. The team continues to get ready for the championship which will kick off in September.

Sat. 4 June

In the afternoon of 4 June, the team arrived at their accommodation in Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam after 24 hours of journey including 2 transits. At the hotel, the players of U-15 Hoang Anh Gia Lai FC, who will play against Japan on 7 June, warmly welcomed the players and that strongly encouraged them even after the long journey. The team immediately started their training. Due to the tiredness from the trip, the team’s Conditioning Coach CHUMAN Kentaro lead the players to have cooling down based training without using the ball just to adjust their condition.

In the night time, the team had a surprise birthday party for forward KUBO Takefusa and they enjoyed themselves a lot. The team will have training sessions on 5th. From 6th, the team will have a series of matches against strong teams of Vietnam, U-18 Becamex Binh Duong FC and U-18 Hoang Anh Gia Lai FC.

* "00 JAPAN" is the nickname of the U-16 Japan National Team that consists of members who were born after 2000.

Players' Comments

DF #2  KUWAHARA Kaito (Avispa Fukuoka U-18)
Before going to India, I had heard that the weather would be very hot and it could be difficult to familiarise myself with the conditions. In fact, it was very wet and hot more than I expected and it was difficult to get used to the weather. I became unwell during the trip but it was a good simulation trip for me. After having the long journey, now I can understand better about what to be careful about when you have an overseas journey. It was good for me to be able to have clear ideas about how it will be on the pitch of the AFC U-16 Championship India 2016, by using the stadium and training venues in this opportunity. For the championship in this September, I will do my best in any training including conditioning. Especially I will continue to work on improving my quality of pass and ability to observe the situation on the pitch. 

MF #17  SEHATA Gijo (JFA Academy Fukushima U18)
I had a lot of difficulty in getting familiar with food, and as a result I lost weight and could not keep good condition. I deeply understood the fact that you cannot make a good performance if your condition is poor. My issues are positioning in regards to not keeping a good distance between forward players, and lack of flexibility that I can’t change distance and angle according to players, so I want to proactively challenge to improve these issues in this trip in Vietnam. In defence, I want to be quicker in stealing the ball. 

FW #14  KOZUKI Soichiro (Kyoto Sanga F.C. U-18)
By this trip in Goa, India, I could get a very good feel how the championship’s venue is. The pitch condition, weather, and anything else we experienced there was very good to prepare for the championship. I was unwell during the stay, but it shouldn’t happen again in the championship in September. I take this experience as a good lesson for me to understand very deeply about the importance of conditioning. The team’s mood is good and we have been gradually become even more united. In India, I couldn’t score, so during this time in Vietnam I want to stick to scoring and to contribute to the team’s victory. Throughout the match time, I want to run well and to score; this is the way that I can gain in confidence. 

Schedule

*Local Time
*The schedule is subject to change due to the team condition, the weather, etc.